Andy Lehman and Ray Mason

Andy Lehman & The Night Moves “Low Country”

Andy Lehman’s debut “Landline” showed a lot of promise, and his development continues here. With help from his new band, The Night Moves, he’s left the harder guitar sound to a softer, glossier approach. An excellent single is the emotional “An Arrow Flew” where the strings build to an exuberant chorus. The production has a wide open sound that works well on ballads “I Smelled You On The Breeze” where it conveys brilliant pop longing, I’ve not heard since George Michael. Unfortunately it doesn’t help on lighter pop like “Million To One” where a catchy song drowns in echo-filled instrumentation. On “Wolf’s In Sheep’s Clothing” Andy sounds a little like family friendly alt rockers The Fray or Train here. Songs like this and “All Along The Roads We Walked” sound too commercial to me, but they are good quality songs. For me, the gorgeous ballads like “Missing At The Docks” and “Moving With You” make up for this. Give it a try, you can get a FREE sampler on Andy’s site.

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Ray Mason “Like Bugs Chewing On Paper”

Americana rocker Ray Mason is an amalgam of The Barenaked Ladies and Tom Petty, where you can hear a song about almost anything, like an earnest tune about your “Lunch Box.” Mason with his trademark Silvertone guitar has been pumping out music albums since 1996, and it’s an acquired taste. The slow tempo of “Shooting Over The Head” gives way to a full upbeat rocker, with tempo shifts and strings for emphasis. All this is pretty melodic, even the title track, with goofy lyrics about aliens/bugs… “what’s it about a desert in outer space, don’t these creatures like any other place.” Mason has a speaking/singing approach on most of the album that contrasts with his brilliant musicianship. But after albums mid point, it really takes off. My favorite here is “Tourist In Town” – like Stew (Passing Strange) or Todd Rundgren, it’s a funky mix of rock and storytelling through a stream of consciousness narrative. Another highlight is the fun “Everything Worked” with Ray’s best vocal performance. When you hear “Ceiling” you will wonder, Ray could probably write an ode to a lawn sprinkler and you’d love to hear it.

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